Wisteria floribunda
(Willd.) DC. (Japanese wisteria ) |
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Family: Fabaceae (Pea Family) Synonym(s): Kraunhia floribunda, Rehsonia floribunda Duration: Perennial Habit: Vine
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Description: Deciduous high climbing, twining, or trailing leguminous woody vines (or cultured as shrubs) to 70 feet (20 m) long. History: Introduced from Asia in the early 1800s. Traditional southern porch vines. Biology & Spread: Exotic wisterias are long-lived, some vines surviving 50 years or more. Vegetative reproduction is their primary means of expansion. Numerous stolons, or above-ground stems, develop roots and shoots at short intervals. Abundant seeds may also be produced if conditions are favorable, but flower buds are susceptible to winter kill. In riparian habitats, seeds may be carried downstream in water for great distances. Ecological Threat: Exotic wisterias impair and overtake native shrubs and trees through strangling or shading. Climbing wisteria vines can kill sizable trees, opening the forest canopy and increasing sunlight to the forest floor, which in turn favors its aggressive growth. Chinese and Japanese wisterias are hardy and aggressive, capable of forming thickets so dense that little else grows. US Habitat: Form dense infestations where previously planted. Occur on wet to dry sites. Colonize by vines twining and covering shrubs and trees and by runners rooting at nodes when vines covered by leaf litter. Seeds water-dispersed along riparian areas. Large seed size a deterrent to animal dispersal. Distribution
Resembles/Alternatives: There are a variety of creeping or climbing vines native to the eastern U.S. that are good alternatives to the invasive exotic wisterias. Some examples include American wisteria (Wisteria frutescens), trumpet creeper (Campsis radicans), trumpet honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens), Dutchman?s pipe (Aristolochia macrophylla), and crossvine (>Bignonia capreolata). Contact your local native plant society for information on sources of these and other native plants. Management: The only practical methods currently available for control of exotic wisterias are mechanical and chemical. Cut climbing or trailing vines as close to the root collar as possible. This technique, while labor intensive, is feasible for small populations, as a pretreatment for large impenetrable infestations, or for areas where herbicide use is not desirable. Wisteria will continue to resprout after cutting until its root stores are exhausted. For this reason, cutting should begin early in the growing season and, if possible, sprouts cut every few weeks until autumn. Cutting will stop the growth of existing vines and and prevent seed production. However, cut vines left coiled around trunks may eventually girdle trees and shrubs as they continue to grow and increase in girth. For this reason, the vines should be removed entirely or at least cut periodically along their length. USE PESTICIDES WISELY: ALWAYS READ THE ENTIRE PESTICIDE LABEL CAREFULLY, FOLLOW ALL MIXING AND APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS AND WEAR ALL RECOMMENDED PERSONAL PROTECTIVE GEAR AND CLOTHING. CONTACT YOUR STATE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE FOR ANY ADDITIONAL PESTICIDE USE REQUIREMENTS, RESTRICTIONS OR RECOMMENDATIONS. MENTION OF PESTICIDE PRODUCTS ON THIS WEB SITE DOES NOT CONSTITUTE ENDORSEMENT OF ANY MATERIAL. Listing Source
Text References
Data Source Last Updated: 2007-11-08 by EEE |
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